State of the Industry - 2006
State of the Industry - 2006
2006, George W. Bush is the nation's president. The...
...United States is at war in Iraq and the economy struggles to recover from a post Sept. 11 crash. Digital files can be sent across the country in a matter of minutes via the Internet and the Mp3 player is first-rate technology for compiling music collections. Business forms manufacturers are now solutions providers and BFL&S has changed its tag line to read "The Publication for Distributors and Manufacturers of Printed Products."
Today, the buzz words are more hip, the equipment mixes more high-tech, the products more diverse and the marketing methods more sophisticated. Sales pros have morphed into solution-oriented service providers adding value to build relationships in tech-savvy environments where
laptop-totting, cell-phone-using, iPod-listening end-users are obsessed with upticks, downsizing and seamless workflows for increased efficiency and reduced costs.
For their part, suppliers have moved the main business focus from conventional business printing to the total delivery of a message or piece of information by various means. Add to all of this, the shift in the competitive landscape, in particular the age-old battle between the independents and the major directs with the Nov. 2005 WorkflowOne/Relizon merger.
Change is inevitable, but growth is optional. Ironically, the key lies in the one factor that has remained constant since even before the days of the green-bar paper boom—listening to customers' needs. By continuing to understand and respond to customers' changing business needs, manufacturers and distributors will find future success.
Hold on to Your Earbuds
Doug Traxler, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Baltimore-based Webb/Mason (established in 1989) said that what most characterizes President Warner Mason's successful leadership style is his ability to listen to customers. "Our customers are responsible for the change in our distributorship model," he said. "Webb/Mason didn't consciously set out to become a print management company. Our customers told us that it is in this capacity that we are most valuable, helping them to capture information, control brands and measure results while making it
easier for employees to access the print media being created."
The types of problems the company solves today are different from those it was solving five years ago, but they still involve unique, new ways to use print media. "Ten years ago, I sold predominantly forms, labels and computer supplies. Today, forms are a very small part of my
personal orders—it's more commercial print, 1:1 marketing and fulfillment," said Mason.
The company specializes in the mid- to upper-mid level market. The top 20 accounts are large national and international companies across all markets, including satellite radio and communications firms, but Webb/Mason applies the same business practices to customers of all sizes. "Any organization trying to communicate using media is a great candidate for what we do," said Traxler. "If it's a large, complex organization with multiple locations, it simply magnifies the types of problems that we are built to solve."
For instance, in discussing an order for brochures, the customer may reveal that the brochures will be placed in a pocket folder that's contained in a custom-branded box along with a CD. And, for the next two distributions, a sleeve of custom-printed golf balls is included. The total package will then be going to four different retailers, each with different specifications for inbound materials, and will need to be followed up with digitally printed on-demand newsletters. "At Webb/Mason, we
embrace the challenge of understanding the whole process and touch every point, including, on the back end, providing analytical reports and consumption and replenishment information all through the same relationship," said Traxler.
In another case, a large manufacturer rolling out new packaging and racking systems had to figure out individual needs for 20,000 retail locations. "We explained how our online enterprise-wide print management tool (EPM), which includes warehousing and distribution, could enable each
site to complete a questionnaire determining what, when, where and how much to ship, and we could have it together for them in half an hour," said Mason.
"You wonder how surveying is a printing company's mandate, and yet our customers are saying this is the type of service they want in their relationship with us," added Traxler. "The customer also needed us to store and distribute racks and stands and provide reports on each location's usage. It's a matter of listening, and being flexible and adaptive."
"Technology, in and of itself, is not great service. It is simply a tool to provide information to all parties and make processes more efficient," observed Mason. "This is a custom business and there will always be a people side to it. Sales reps must be great listeners and have a broad understanding of customer needs, including some combination of technology, fulfillment, distribution and information reporting."
Something Old, Something New
The company has more than 200 employees in 15 sales offices and five distribution centers, including 38 sales reps and more than 70 customer service reps. "I believe we are upside down on this," said Mason. "Our approach is to take very efficient, talented sales people who become client advocates, and build a team of two or three CSRs around them who manage the routine activities."
"The combination of sales and support is what makes us successful," Traxler said. "Actually, the key to success is to surround yourself with people smarter than you and then get the hell out of their way," added Mason with a chuckle.
Company leaders, including Mason and Traxler, also maintain books of business, serving existing accounts and attracting new ones. "This way, we stay connected to what the market is saying about our value proposition and hear the validations and critiques of our business model, not
just what is being filtered up to us," said Traxler.
Today's sales pros are more creative than ever in how they get in front of a client for the first time. "Our people use the Internet, network for referrals, send well-crafted e-mails and do direct mailings, including a poster we've developed that visually represents our tag line 'You can do what you can't imagine,' which is suitable for framing," Mason said. "Still, the objective is talking to people, and good old fashioned cold calling or 'smoke stacking' is a great way to explore sales
territories and find new business."
Webb/Mason posted $65 million in sales revenue for 2005, driven in large part by increases in corporate direct mail campaigns and marketing literature, as well as commercial printing and promotional products. The company has enjoyed an average growth rate of 13.5 percent for the last
five years. The online business grew at an even faster rate last year—closer to 25 percent—as existing clients convert to the online systems.
Mason stressed the importance of customer education in making end-users aware of best service options. "This is a huge change in the paradigm compared to the way I did business at Wallace Computer Services back before there was electricity," joked Mason.
Commenting on distributor/manufacturer partnerships and what the company calls production matching, Traxler said, "Our preferred suppliers continue to change their businesses, including investing in new equipment, to accommodate things we bring to them. They are resources for understanding what's coming next, not just places to fax price quotes."
Mason observed that there is still a market niche for small distributorships. "But, if they can't get out of the 80s with their product offerings, it's going to get increasingly tough in an ever-shrinking market," he said. To survive in the future, distributors will have to embrace digital printing technology and direct mail.
Traxler expects high-quality digital and on-demand printing to continue growing as companies take advantage of more effective ways to personalize and customize direct mail campaigns. "Once people locate what they're searching for on the Internet, they typically request more printed information," he commented.
"For the most part, customers know what they want, they just don't know that certain things are possible. This is what inspired our 'You can do what you can't imagine' tag line," observed Traxler.
Said Mason,"All you have to do is listen to the customer, and the customer will take you there."
By Maggie DeWitt
- Companies:
- Webb/Mason
- WorkflowOne
- Places:
- Iraq
- United States